Residents, businesses and emergency services in North Yorkshire were nervously watching river levels on Thursday as the after-effects of days of rain continued to threaten hundreds of properties.

Parts of York were underwater and flats on higher ground were cut off as the river Ouse through the city continued to rise, prompting fears that flood defences protecting other areas might be breached when flows peaked about mid-morning.

Fire and rescue services said the flooding was already the worst in the city for 10 years.

Nearly 60 flood warnings in England, Wales and the Scottish borders remained in force after some areas suffered more than twice the normal monthly rainfall since Sunday. A bridge in Tadcaster remained closed amid safety fears, while a northbound section of the A1 remained closed near Catterick.

A spokesman for the Highways Agency said: "We are still unsure as to when it will be reopened, as there is a lot of water in the adjacent fields running off on to the carriageway. The fire services are due to reassess the situation at midday."

Other parts of the road and rail network were still struggling to recover.

Alison Baptiste, flood risk manager at the Environment Agency, said: "We would urge people, especially in the north of England, to continue to be prepared for flooding, sign up for free flood warnings, keep up to date with the latest situation, and stay away from dangerous floodwater."

The RSPCA said it had rescued two donkeys, 15-year-old Davy and the aptly-named four-year-old Noah, from a field in the village of Cattal, Yorkshire, after flooding left them in deep water on Tuesday.